5 Signs That you Might Struggle To Bring Your A-Game When It Matters Most

We have all been there, a big moment to shine and you've done it a hundred times before. Then when the rubber meets the road...you flop harder than a soccer player trying to pull a foul.

I had a situation like this one time in football. I was snapping the football into play from a shotgun formation (the quarterback standing 5 yards behind me) on the final play of the game for a sure fire play we always did. I threw the ball into the ground rather than at the quarter back and we lost the game. I had never done that before except for a couple times in practice.

Looking back at it, I think the problem was that I was more worried about who I was blocking than getting my teammate the ball.

This happens in sport, especially at the amateur level. Athletes who performed at well over and over again and then when the pressure is on they seem to have a lack in focus that makes them falter. This is one reason to train focus and awareness as an athlete and a coach so you can mitigate these slip-ups when they matter most.

Here are some signs that you may need to work on training focus to help assure high level performance not matter what the circumstances.

1. Poor performance in competition in spite of doing excellent in practice

2. Letting one mistake or poor performance spiral out of control and lead to a series of poor performance decisions

3. The tendency to self-sabotage as time goes on

4. Allowing outside factors influence energy and focus leading to variable performance in practice and competition

5. Focusing on things outside their control or blame external factors for poor performance

These are strong influences that focus might be an issue. If you or someone you coach/train consistently shows these signs, or shows them out of the blue, it might be a sign that they need to work on training their ability to focus and be more self-aware.